Reply #7: I buy the Hunt's "Petite Diced" tomatoes (no spice), currently $1 a can at Safeway [View All]

One of the things I learned from the Rao's Cookbooks is that you need to put the herbs in right before you take the sauce off the heat, so they retain a fresh flavor and don't become bitter.

So I take a 14.5 ounce can of the Hunt's, one clove of garlic (minced) and about a quarter teaspoon McCormick Minced Onions (yeah, fresh onions are better, but the McCormick is more convenient).

I put one to two tablespoons of olive oil in the saucepan on medium heat. I add the minced garlic. Sauteing it takes about a minute, any longer and it will burn and ruin the flavor of the sauce. I add the tomatoes and minced onion and bring it to a boil. I put a lid on the pot, slightly tilted so it will vent, and bring the heat down to low. I normally let it simmer an hour, checking every 15 minutes or so, and using a wooden spoon to further break up the tomato pieces (even though they are already "petite diced."

At about the one hour mark, most of the "watery" liquid of the tomatoes has reduced and you have what looks like a thick sauce. At this point I add "approximately" 1/4 teaspoon each of salt, dried parsley, and dried basil, and about 1/8 teaspoon of oregano. I give it a couple of stirs, take it off the heat, add the cooked pasta, top with some grated Parmesan, and I'm done...a home-cooked dinner for about 2 bucks (tomatoes + pasta + Parmesan + spices).

Some times I'll go to the local markets with butcher counters that will sell me 1/2 pound of good-quality ground beef, or I'll go to the Neto Sausage Factory and get a couple of Italian sausages, or I'll add some of the reconstituted dried porcini mushrooms I keep on hand, or a small can of sliced black olives.

But most nights, it's just the canned tomatoes.

:toast: